SOPA / PIPA / MPAA / ACTA - MegaUpload affects YOU

[Brocke]

MegaUpload Dangerous Secrets affect YOU, Mike Mozart JeepersMedia ACTA / PIPA / SOPA
http://youtu.be/-tD1yaE0GfQ

[Brocke]

Lawrence Lessig: Read Write > Read Only = Free Culture

..."we made mixed tapes, they made re-mixed music. We watched TV, they make TV. It is technology that has made them different. And as we see what this technology can do, what we can do, we need to recognize you can't kill the instinct the technology produces, you can only CRIMINALIZE it. We can't stop our kids from using it, we can only drive it underground. WE can't make our kids passive again, we can only make them "pirates", and is that good?...

Lawrence Lessig
Director of the Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics, and a Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. Prior to returning to Harvard, he was a professor at Stanford Law School, where he founded the schools Center for Internet and Society, and at the University of Chicago. He clerked for Judge Richard Posner on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals and Justice Antonin Scalia on the United States Supreme Court.

Larry Lessig: How creativity is being strangled by the law
http://youtu.be/7Q25-S7jzgs
..."we made mixed tapes, they made re-mixed music. We watched TV, they make TV. It is technology that has made them different. And as we see what this technology can do, what we can do, we need to recognize you can't kill the instinct the technology produces, you can only CRIMINALIZE it. We can't stop our kids from using it, we can only drive it underground. WE can't make our kids passive again, we can only make them "pirates", and is that good?...

Copyright: Forever Less One Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk862BbjWx4

When Copyright Goes Bad (English)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_C77d7KBHk

Do Copyright Laws Stifle Creativity? - Lawrence Lessig
http://youtu.be/JXwB9FlkNXA

TEDxNYED - Lawrence Lessig - 03/06/10
http://youtu.be/FhTUzNKpfio

Lawrence Lessig Introduction at e-G8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsJiR-CIkAc
Lawrence Lessig Introduction at e-G8, may 25 2011

[Jordan]

European Parliament Official In Charge Of ACTA Quits, And Denounces The 'Masquerade' Behind ACTA

This is interesting. Kader Arif, the "rapporteur" for ACTA, has quit that role in disgust over the process behind getting the EU to sign onto ACTA. A rapporteur is a person "appointed by a deliberative body to investigate an issue." However, it appears his investigation of ACTA didn't make him very pleased:

    I want to denounce in the strongest possible manner the entire process that led to the signature of this agreement: no inclusion of civil society organisations, a lack of transparency from the start of the negotiations, repeated postponing of the signature of the text without an explanation being ever given, exclusion of the EU Parliament's demands that were expressed on several occasions in our assembly.

    As rapporteur of this text, I have faced never-before-seen manoeuvres from the right wing of this Parliament to impose a rushed calendar before public opinion could be alerted, thus depriving the Parliament of its right to expression and of the tools at its disposal to convey citizens' legitimate demands.”

    Everyone knows the ACTA agreement is problematic, whether it is its impact on civil liberties, the way it makes Internet access providers liable, its consequences on generic drugs manufacturing, or how little protection it gives to our geographical indications.

    This agreement might have major consequences on citizens' lives, and still, everything is being done to prevent the European Parliament from having its say in this matter. That is why today, as I release this report for which I was in charge, I want to send a strong signal and alert the public opinion about this unacceptable situation. I will not take part in this masquerade.

Pretty rare to find such direct honesty in political circles. That's quite a direct and clear condemnation of the entire process. In terms of process, it will be interesting to see if this has an impact. While the EU did sign on to ACTA today, it still needs to be ratified by the European Parliament (more on that in a little while). Having Arif quit makes a pretty big statement, and hopefully makes it easier for Parliament Members to speak out loudly against ACTA... Still, this is an uphill battle. The supporters of ACTA have been working to get ACTA approved for years. To them, this is basically a done deal.

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120126/11014317553/european-parliament-official-charge-acta-quits-denounces-masquerade-behind-acta.shtml

[Brocke]

The Past, Present and Future of Internet Censorship
http://youtu.be/spapXznZf4I

In recent weeks the general public has mobilized to face US legislative threats to Internet freedoms. Far from a conclusive victory, however, the death of SOPA and PIPA only highlight the latest in a series of measures that are seeking to create a legal framework for government-administered Internet censorship.

[Rtruth]

What bothers me is how they seem to want to make examples of all kinds of innocent civilians. Either fining them, enprisoning them, even killing them. It's like come on already, it's so pathetic. If they want to scheme and strategize about how they plan to take over the world, if they want to take down websites, and pass stupid laws, fine whatever, I just wish they wouldn't involved harming perfectly innocent civilians in there horse play. It's like if you wanna play phychopath fine, but leave us civilians out of it!!! Leave us alone, we're making you tons of money anyway paying out taxes. We don't need endless harrassment on top of it all. I know they don't care but whatever.

[Jordan]

SIGN THE PETITION:

As concerned global citizens, we call on you to stand for a free and open Internet and reject the ratification of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), which would destroy it. The Internet is a crucial tool for people around the world to exchange ideas and promote democracy. We urge you to show true global leadership and protect our rights.


http://www.avaaz.org/en/eu_save_the_internet_spread/?feEVybb&pv=310

[sab]

More news on MegaUpload:

http://kim.com/app.php
http://kim.com/mega/

Mega, a new product.

[Brocke]

Megaupload warrants ruled illegal by New Zealand court

By Hayley Tsukayama, Published: June 29

A court in New Zealand has ruled that the search warrants used by New Zealand police when they raided the home of Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom were invalid.

Reuters reported that a High Court judge said the search warrants were “too vague” and “did not adequately describe the offences to which they related.” The judge also ruled that the FBI acted unlawfully when it took copies of data from Dotcom’s computer offshore.

New Zealand police officers raided the home of the Megaupload executive in January, when the U.S. Justice Department shut down the file-sharing site on charges that it facilitated online piracy, The Washington Post reported. The case made a splash not only because police also seized valuables and other property from Dotcom, but also because the story happened at the same time that Congress was debating two controversial anti-piracy bills.

Before the site was shut down, it claimed to have 1 billion users — with 50 million daily users — and, at one time, was believed to be the Internet’s 13th most-popular Web site.

New Zealand police told Reuters that they were considering the judgment and trying to “determine what further action might be required.

MORE: http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/megaupload-warrants-ruled-illegal-by-new-zealand-court/2012/06/28/gJQA9sfT9V_story.html